The Toronto Raptors have been one of the most surprising teams in the league thus far — well surprising to those who haven't been following this team closely for the last decade.
Barring a total disaster down the stretch, the Raptors should eclipse their Vegas win total of 35.5, yet, there are many questions that haven't been completely answered since opening night way back in October.
Our NBA.com staff took on the challenge of answering some of those questions true or false style. Here's what they came up with.
True or False: The Raptors are the NBA's biggest overachiever
False. There's little doubt that Toronto is one of the league's feel-good stories. Losing Kyle Lowry on the heels of the season in Tampa could have pushed the Raptors over the rebuild edge.
In fact, they entered the season with an over/under of just 35.5 wins. They nearly hit the over by the All-Star break and according to FiveThirtyEight's latest projections, are on pace to finish 45-37.
If it holds to form, that is tied for the fourth-largest jump over preseason expectations.
| Team | O/U | Proj. Wins | Diff. |
| Cavaliers | 26.5 | 48 | +21.5 |
| Grizzlies | 41.5 | 56 | +14.5 |
| Suns | 51.5 | 64 | +12.5 |
| Raptors | 35.5 | 45 | +9.5 |
| Wolves | 35.5 | 45 | +9.5 |
So while the Raptors are certainly ONE of the NBA's biggest overachievers it's difficult to label them the single-biggest surprise given what's happening in Cleveland.
- Micah Adams
True or False: Fred VanVleet is the perfect Kyle Lowry successor
True. I mean, this one is obvious, no? Who better to carry the torch than the player Lowry spent the last few years mentoring?
Lowry has obviously left huge shoes to fill and he may always be remembered as the greatest Raptor of all time, but VanVleet has proven that he's better prepared to lead this team than I think anyone expected going into the season, posting career-highs across the board en route to his first All-Star selection.
Even if he doesn't reach quite the same heights that Lowry did in Toronto, I wouldn't be all that surprised if VanVleet ends up leaving a similar mark, both on and off the court.
— Scott Rafferty
True or false: Pascal Siakam will make an All-NBA Team
True. Despite missing the first 10 games of the season and the inevitable rust that came with his return to action, Siakam has been one of the six best forwards in the NBA this season. Even with a slow start, Siakam's averages are now up to 22.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 5.1 assists per contest as the game continues to look easier and easier for him.
Since the calendar flipped to 2022, Siakam's numbers have been even gaudier, with averages of 23.7 points, 9.1 rebounds and 5.9 assists while shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 40.8 percent from 3-point range. In 2019-20, Siakam earned an All-NBA nod and it's no exaggeration to say he's been worlds better this season.
Looking at the landscape of forwards in the league, Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James are locks, as is Kevin Durant, provided he plays in enough games and DeMar DeRozan, if he's considered a forward by voters (he's starting at guard at the All-Star Game). Siakam will be mentioned alongside the likes of Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green (if he plays enough), Khris Middleton and Jayson Tatum as a deserving forward. If Siakam continues to play at this elite level, he will have built a case worthy of a selection.
– Gilbert McGregor
True or False: The Raptors won the Gary Trent Jr.-Norman Powell trade
True, and that's no shot at Norm Powell, that's just the reality. Trent has been sensational for the Raptors this season averaging 18.3 points, 1.9 steals while shooting 39.7 percent from three. He's been the perfect 3-and-D wing in Toronto and has complemented Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet well.
As great as Powell was in moments for the Raptors, he lacked consistency. That hasn't been the case for Trent Jr. even on nights when his shot may be off, his defense has been exemplary.
Portland eventually traded Powell away to kick start a rebuild after less than a year of his services. Meanwhile, the Raptors have an everyday starter who plays hard on both ends of the floor and is only 23 years old! Chalk another one up for the Raptors front office.
- Carlan Gay
True or false: OG Anunoby is the Raptors most important player
True. Not "best" or "most valuable," but most important. This season, we've applauded Siakam's resurgence, marvelled at VanVleet's All-Star leap, relished in Barnes' amazing rookie season and enjoyed Trent's emergence, but what about OG?
In a season that's had a number of chapters, the one in which we lauded Anunoby's growth seems so long ago. Let's not lose sight of the fact that he scored a career-best 36 points in a road win over the Knicks and is averaging a career-best 17.7 points per game this season. All while playing all-league defense. Just ask Trae Young:
Look at OG Anunoby or is it OG AnuNOby or is it OG Anunahby or is it No-G Anunoby. pic.twitter.com/NaDolAMCxV
— Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20) February 5, 2022
Depending on the night, Anunoby is Toronto's third or fourth option on offense. That he's capable of exploding on that end of the floor is often overlooked. And as we've learned, Anunoby doesn't have to have a big scoring night to be effective. His ability to make life difficult for elite scorers will be extremely important when the postseason rolls around.
– Gilbert McGregor
True or False: The Raptors won the Goran Dragic-Thaddeus Young trade
True. This trade is a little fresher, but I gave the Raptors a B+ and the Spurs a B when it went down. Swapping Dragic, who had been away from the team since the end of November due to personal reasons, with Young, who is coming off of one of the best seasons of his career and should be a nice addition to Toronto's bench, is probably worth falling 10ish spots in the upcoming draft, which looks like it's going to be top-heavy.
If anything, the trade makes the Raptors even funkier. All the talk going into the season was about how the Raptors were loading up on players between 6-foot-7 and 6-foot-9. Guess what? Young is listed at 6-foot-8 with a 7-foot wingspan, and he's capable of doing a little bit of everything on both ends of the court.
At some point, the Raptors are probably going to need a more traditional center, but I appreciate them zigging while everyone else is zagging.
- Scott Rafferty
True or False: The Raptors will win a playoff series
False. Before you call me a party pooper, let's get one thing straight: simply making the playoffs — and potentially rising above the play-in — would be a massive win. Again it's not hard to imagine a world in which a slow start convinced Masai Ujiri to hit the reset button and accelerate the rebuild around Scottie Barnes.
As it stands now, the Raptors have about a 50% chance of finishing either sixth or seventh in the East according to inpredictable.
The top of the East is a bloodbath and totally up for grabs so it's a total guess a to who they would even play at this point. But the Bucks, Heat, 76ers and Nets in some order feel like prohibitive favorites while the Cavaliers, Bulls and now Celtics look imposing in their own right.
Raptors fans would be wise to manage expectations. One and done would be absolutely nothing to scoff at given the current state of the East following a landscape-shifting trade deadline.
- Micah Adams
True or False: The Raptors halfcourt offense will struggle in the postseason
True. The Raptors have a top 10 offense heading into the All-Star break. They also have one of the slowest paces in the league at 96.5 according to NBA Stats. That might lead you to believe that Toronto has jumped over one of its biggest hurdles since the departure of Kawhi Leonard, but that's not the case.
Toronto has still been super successful in fast break opportunities averaging 15.2 points per game which is good for third-best in the NBA. But the halfcourt they've struggled to score at a high clip.
According to Cleaning the Glass, the Raptors are averaging 91.1 points per 100 possessions which ranks 26th in the league. If the Raptors were to finish with that mark it would be their worst rank since the 2011-12 season where they finished ranked 23rd averaging 83.2 points per 100 in the halfcourt.
We know the postseason is where games are won and lost in the halfcourt. Unless something drastic happens, the Raptors will struggle to score in the playoffs, thus leading to them potentially being a first-round exit.
- Carlan Gay
